Fate is Cruel
by Echowindsong
Summary: A mysterious girl...with an uncertain future. How will Sera unravel her destiny?
1. Prolouge

**Prologue: Alone**

"Sera! Sera!" Surah shouted to the wind. "Sera! Where are you?" Surah and her twin sister, Sera were trapped, alone in the Spine. They had started out lost together, but suddenly they were alone. "Sera!" _Sera! Sera!_ the mountains echoed back. "Sera! This isn't funny!" _This isn't funny!_ _Funny! _"Sera! Please! Answer me!" _Answer me! Answer me! _

"Who is Sera?" a cold voice said out of the darkness. Surah whipped around to the sound of the speaker.

"Who are you? Where are you?" Surah said. The speaker stepped out of the darkness. He had blood-red hair, maroon eyes, and a cold smile. A Shade. Surah stepped back, hand at her dagger.

"Do not be afraid," the Shade said smoothly. "I may be able to help you find this Sera, whoever she is. Take my hand, and I will lead you to her. I know all that goes on in this mountains. I will help you, but for a price."

"What is this price?" Surah said, stepping back another step.

"Join me. You will have power. You will..." The Shade spun a tapestry of wealth, power, land, and respect. Everything Surah ever wanted, she could have. The Shade held out his right hand, which was glowing with red sorcery. Surah stepped forward, and took his hand.

"I will join you."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter One: Sera

Sera woke up looking at a ceiling of a cave.

"What? Where..." She saw a face looking over her. "Who..." she said weakly. Another face joined the first.

"She's awake. Someone tell Nasuada." the second face said.

"I'll do it!" Some eager voice said from somewhere else in the room.

"What?" Sera tried to sit up, but she couldn't. She sank back into her bed. Her vision began to come back into focus. She saw that the first face was a worried-looking woman with green eyes and red, curly hair. The second face was a young man with vivid blue eyes.

"I'll let you talk to her," the woman said to the man. "But tell me if she passes out again." With that, she left the room. The young man sat down on the side of her bed.

"Can you...can you help me sit up?" Sera croaked.

"Sure," the man said, and helped her sit up in bed. Sera blinked away the black spots that were swarming her vision, and asked another question.

"What is your name?" The young man gave a small smile.

"My name is.....Eragon." At any normal time, Sera would have been surprised, but here, she thought, anything could happen.

"Oh...Really?"

"Yes, really. What is your name?"

"Sera Aiiaassdaughter."

"So your mother is named Aiiaa? That's a pretty name."

"Yes, I know. Sometimes my sister and I wondered why we didn't get names like hers." Sera's eyes welled up with tears at the mention of Surah. Where was her sister now? Sera tried to ignore that question inside her head and blinked away her tears. Crying would do no good now. "So, you are the Eragon?"

"Yep."

"That must be pretty hard, I mean, people must expect so much of you..." she trailed off.

"How did you know? Are you famous, too?" he said. Sera laughed.

"Me? Famous? That's pretty funny. I'm not famous at all!" She laughed again. Eragon smiled. The first lady stuck her head in the door.

"Oh, good, you're awake. Well, have you two been getting to know eachother?" She didn't wait for an answer. "At any rate, it's time for you to get some rest, young lady. Out you!" she said to Eragon and shooed him out the door. He didn't seem to mind. _See you later, _he mouthed over his shoulder. The door shut behind him.

"Well, well, well, time to get you fixed up now?" Once again, she didn't wait for an answer. "Hmm, what is your name again, and what were you doing out in the Spine alone?" She asked while she was bustling around.

"My name is Sera, and I was with my sister Surah, and we got separated, and I have to find her now!" Sera sat bolt upright, but vomited and slid back down again.

"Now, now don't get all excited, we would have gotten your sister too if she was there, and we searched the whole Spine inch by inch. You met Eragon? Well, he grew up in those mountains. He helped search for anyone else, but no one was there."

"What!?! No one was there?"

"No one. Now are you going to retch again?" Sera barely heard her. Surah wasn't there? Where was she? Sera slid weakly under the covers and unwillingly closed her eyes and fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Two: Thoughts

_See you later, _Eragon mouthed over his shoulder as Angela shooed him out the door. Sera smiled weakly, then the door shut. Eragon roamed the halls of Tronjheim, looking for some of his friends. Roran, maybe. Or Orik. And of course, there was always Saphira. He decided to find Saphira.

_Saphira! Where are you?_

_I'm in the dragonhold, Eragon. Why didn't you use your brains to figure out where I was?_

_I have a lot on my mind right now._

_I'll say. _Saphira broke off the contact. Eragon broke into a jog in the direction of the dragonhold, but barely noticed where he was going. His mind was whirling about that girl, Sera. She was a human, he could tell, but her ears...her ears...they were pointed. He had also seen both of her hands, and she wasn't a Rider, either. Maybe he could ask Arya about it later. He stopped in front of the dragonhold, and went inside. There, Arya was talking with Saphira.

"Hello, Eragon," Arya said.

"Hello," he said in return. _Hello, Saphira._

_Hello, little one._

"So, Eragon, have you met the girl we rescued from the Spine?" Arya said.

"Um, yes, her name's Sera, and that's who I wanted to talk to you about." Arya looked at him intensely.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Well, she's human, right?" Arya nodded. "And she's not a Rider, right?" Arya nodded again. "Then why does she have pointed ears?"

"Pointed ears? She has pointed ears? Are you sure!?!"

"Yes, I'm positive." Arya got up from her seat and started pacing.

_S__omeone please tell me what this is about? _Saphira asked. Eragon told her.

"And you're positive she was human?" Arya asked Eragon.

"Absolutely sure,"

"That means, that means," Arya stopped pacing and looked at Eragon with that same strange intensity. "Did she tell you her mother's name?"

"Yes, she said she was Sera Aiiaasdaughter."

"Aiiaa?!? Oh, no..."

"What? Why is Aiiaa, whoever she is, so important?"

"Because Aiiaa was an elf. Izalandi's sister, in fact. And if Sera is human but has pointed ears, that means she is a halfling. Half human, half elf."

"Who's the father?" Eragon asked. Arya hesitated.

"I can't tell you. Not here, not now."


End file.
